One Acadiana hosts Building the Region event in Abbeville

ABBEVILLE -- When the goal is successful developing the economy in an area, it’s best when the people vested in that success see the area.
One Acadiana, an economic development organization that serves the nine-parish region of Acadiana, allowed an opportunity for a close-up view of Iberia, St. Mary and Vermilion Parishes during its 2015 Building the Region Conference. The two-day event wrapped up Friday afternoon with a luncheon at Magdalen Place in Abbeville.
“I’ve had a blast over the last day and a half,” One Acadiana President and CEO Jason El Koubi said.
Members of chambers of commerce, representatives of businesses and other entities took part in the tour that spanned Thursday and Friday.
The stops included the Acadiana Regional Airport in Iberia Parish. The group of more than 40 also visited the Metal Shark facility in Morgan City and heard a presentation by the Port of Morgan City. Former Gov. Mike Foster hosted a reception at his home.
The group gathered at the Delcambre Port in Vermilion Friday morning, hearing from Port Director Wendall Verret and Mark Shirley of the LSU AgCenter. Both discussed the impact of the port on the seafood industry, as well as the impact of other natural resources in Vermilion Parish.
“We wanted to learn more about our region,”
El Koubi said during Friday’s luncheon. “We wanted to take a group of our regional family members and go to some of the places that we know and hear about, but might not have time to visit or have access to.”
Building relationships also served as key element for the two days.
“We wanted to get people together from different parishes,” El Koubi said. “We wanted to get them introduced to one another and build that connective tissue.”
El Koubi said simply enjoying the time was important too.
“We wanted to have a lot of fun,” El Koubi said. “At least for me, I feel like it has been great on that note.”
Kirby Gauthier of Gauthier Consulting Inc. in Lafayette agreed.
“I think the whole trip was very educational and informative,” Gauthier said. “I really enjoyed it.”
Anne Falgout, the executive director of the Vermilion Parish Economic Development Alliance, said the bus trip proved its worth.
“I think being on the bus was really special,” Falgout said. “Being able to see our region as a passenger, the way our region looks, is going to be a catalyst for us.
“Seeing what they do in the other parishes, I really think we are going to learn from each other in a real way.”
Marilyn McDonald of Caffery Realty has attended similar events in the past.
“This one made us feel like we were really a member,” McDonald said. “I think this one was really rewarding. We came away with a lot of great ideas.
“I think this was good because we are now more connected.”
Katie Chiasson of Cleco Power said that connection is vital to One Acadiana’s mission.
“Seeing what Metal Shark does and some of those other businesses is great because you really learn something,” Chiasson said. “I think it is especially beneficial to those who don’t get to see that on a regular basis. I think it goes a long way in meeting your goal of becoming fully regional.
“Some people thought this would just be about Lafayette, but this shows it’s about the whole region.”
Anita Begnaud, director, marketing and communications for One Acadiana, said this certainly helps her job.
“My job is to tell the story of Acadiana,” Begnaud said. “This helped me to know more about the region. I think that it is great that we can all carry the message now. If we really want people to know about this great place that we love so much, we now have more foot soldiers who can go talk about these parishes.
“We have that in a way we never did before.”